At the College’s annual Drag Ball event last spring, the Women of Color Alliance (WOCA), a new club on campus that seeks to empower women of color on campus, made their debut to Beyonce’s “Run the World”. Behind the fabulous drag make-up and costumes was Isadora Alteon ’13, one of WOCA’s founders.

Between her work with the Pugh Community Board (PCB) and Director of the Pugh Center and Dean of Students Tashia Bradley, Alteon also found the time to establish a strong presence for WOCA on campus.

Alteon developed a strong sense of initiative and passion for multicultural issues while in high school at the School for International Studies in Brooklyn, N.Y. She was the first student from the school to be offered a scholarship by the Posse Foundation, one of the leading youth leadership development programs in the United States. Posse recruits high achieving high school seniors and gives them the opportunity to reach academic and personal excellence by sending them to top-tier colleges in multicultural groups, or “posses,” of 10 students.

Once on campus with her posse, Alteon began making her mark by participating in, and eventually facilitating, a Colby Conversation on Race (CCOR) group. “It was really fun because we had athletes, we had people from New York City, we had people from Massachusetts,” she said. “It was a nice diverse group. Everyone learned something and appreciated it.”

Participating in CCOR sparked a new way of thinking and looking at diversity in her, but Alteon still wasn’t quite satisfied. She strove to become more involved in multicultural issues on campus her sophomore year and took on an executive role in Students Organized for Black and Hispanic Unity (SOBHU) as well as becoming a member of PCB.

Now in her senior year, Alteon continues to work for the Pugh Center, is an executive member of PCB and is the co-founder of WOCA. She is motivated by a desire to have an impact on the issues that matter to her both on the Hill and beyond. “My activities make my Colby experience that much more fulfilling,” she said. “I am able to be involved with initiatives that promote multicultural understanding, safe communities and tackle all of the issues I hope to spend my life being engaged in.”

Alteon has learned how to maintain her motivation and positivity in the midst of a hectic schedule. “I know I can’t do everything, but I know that I am doing something, and that’s what matters to me,” she said and thanked her friends at WOCA and SOBHU, along with Tashia Bradley, for their support.

A sociology major and African American studies and Jewish studies double minor, Alteon plans to move to Washington, D.C. after graduation to work for a non-profit organization involved with issues around HIV and AIDS, because the area has one of the most alarming rates of the diseases in the U.S. Meanwhile, she will study for the GRE in order to get her Masters’ in public health.

Alteon’s passion and determination, as well as her extensive experience with multicultural affairs on campus will no doubt serve her well, and she is sure to make a difference in D.C.